Get To Know The Three Brewster Select Board Candidates

Age: 73

Occupation: Editorial director, Wiley Publishing (retired); former New Hampshire State

Senator; former Mayor of Rochester, N.H.

Years as Brewster resident: Full-time: four years. Visitor: 42 years

Education: B.A. economics, Davidson College

First, I’m an experienced public servant and I know Brewster well. Brewster’s been part of my and my family’s life for over 40 years. I serve on the planning board, where I’ve learned of the need to modernize our zoning bylaw. I’ve been chair of the Sea Camps advisory committee, and we’re working to find ways to enjoy the Sea Camps’ benefits without seriously burdening taxpayers. I served two years on the Bay Property planning committee and helped shape the Sea Camps plans that were approved by town meeting in 2024. I also serve on the Brewster Ladies’ Library Finance Committee. I’ll use all of this experience if elected to the select board.

Second, I’m an experienced community leader who listens and collaborates. Over decades of serving the public I’ve learned the skills that really make a difference. Solving a community’s issues takes teamwork. I listen to others, keep an open mind, and welcome the opportunity to learn from everyone. I respect others even if we don’t agree on a specific issue.

Third, I’m a problem solver. The town budget is our most important tool for solving problems and I have many years of experience with government budgets.

Towns like Brewster are always challenged with providing services and programs residents need in the most cost-efficient way. We have an advantage because we have an expert town finance team that’s sensitive to how spending impacts our residents. They squeeze every bit of value from our budget dollars. An important part of making difficult decisions is government transparency and making sure residents are well-educated about issues and proposed projects. I’ll always support public engagement activities that help us all understand what our decisions will mean.

Brewster has a long history of supporting environmental protection efforts. Town meeting just approved $100,000 in capital funding to update our integrated water resource management plan. I support this critical activity aimed at water resource protection. We should carefully use Community Preservation Act funds to continue to protect open space and seek state land grants since we’ve had success obtaining them.

I support our water department master plan project because it will help us prepare for Brewster’s future public water system needs.

I’ll also support joint housing and conservation projects like the Washington Chase Bog Habitat for Humanity plan. That’s a smart way of achieving two town goals at once.

Purchasing the Sea Camps in 2021 changed Brewster’s future and residents remain happy we made that investment. The town has received accolades for opening a new beach, a town pool and using the Bay property for community events. In fall 2024, phase 1 funding for the Sea Camps plans was approved at town meeting but not at the ballot. I don’t see this as a setback but as an opportunity to redesign the path forward in a way the community prefers. As chair of the Sea Camps advisory committee, I advocated for the committee to learn more about why residents had voted as they did last fall. We held in-person listening sessions and conducted a survey. We learned residents want to proceed with the plans but at a slower pace to reduce the financial impact. I fully support this approach.

I support the town’s partnerships with the Brewster Conservation Trust and MassAudubon to place Conservation Restrictions on both Sea Camps properties. We’ve agreed to permanently protect parts of both properties and in return will receive $4.5 million from two highly regarded organizations.

Residents have expressed interest in finding new revenue opportunities and I will support that effort.

Protecting and restoring Brewster’s water quality will be one of my top priorities. Brewster launched its integrated water resource management plan (IWRMP) over 10 years ago as the town’s overarching water quality protection plan. Due to changes over the years, Brewster had prepared to update that plan. The Brewster Ponds Coalition offered financial support and their recommendations which were incorporated into the updated plan. With funding approved at town meeting, I support the IWRMP update and look forward to collaborating with the Ponds Coalition and others.

I support the town’s water resources task force — a group of town leaders who collaborate on water protection activities. We are moving forward with additional watershed permit applications that I’ll support so we achieve nitrogen reduction goals. Brewster is fortunate not to have severe water quality problems like other Cape towns that have had to tackle obscenely expensive sewering or mandatory Title 5 system upgrades. Brewster’s steady open space protection over many years has had a positive impact on our water quality, and we need to continue to protect our most sensitive environments. We’ll benefit from monitoring changes in science and technology including septic system research carried out by Barnstable County.

Age:71

Years as Brewster resident: 12 years as permanent resident

Education: University of Vermont, MBA; University of Delaware, BA

Experience may be the most important attribute I bring to the select board. With two long-term members leaving the board, municipal experience is a key attribute that will help with continuity of the board and key projects. My nine years of experience on the Brewster finance committee means I have been through nine budget cycles. This will allow me to “hit the road running.” I have been through the accounting issues that created problems in Brewster in prior years. I was instrumental in establishing the audit committee to ensure independent review of the annual audit. 

In addition, my experience on a school committee in the town of Reading will certainly help as we begin the process of evaluating the Stony Brook Elementary School. On the Reading School Committee I was involved in building/renovating four schools, including the high school and a brand new elementary school.

Brewster has a very efficient and effective town government. I believe we need to continue to offer the services and protections our residents expect. 

Financial training: My experience as a CFO/controller/accounting manager both in private industry and in a not-for-profit company (YMCA Cape Cod) puts me in a unique position to understand budgets, capital expenditures and complex financial reports. I also have extensive experience with implementing and understanding complex accounting systems. 

Willingness to talk and listen to every taxpayer and voter: I am an unaffiliated voter. I believe in a healthy dialog with all our residents and voters. Issues like the boardwalk and Sea Camps that have created some divisiveness could have been avoided with more attentive listening to different citizen groups. I will listen and try to make decisions based on available input. But I hope we all remember, listening does not always mean agreeing. Decisions will have to be made, and some groups will not get everything they desire. That is the nature of compromise.

Many discussions and decisions in the town of Brewster have environmental impacts. There are some who feel that Brewster is at the limit of development potential and that our fragile environment cannot sustain any future growth. On the other side are advocates for affordable housing, which could mean dense housing initiatives. Any housing initiatives need to come with strict environmental protections. If we negatively impact the environment we cherish, we end up adversely impacting businesses and housing value. Our dependence on our sole source aquifer impacts any development decisions that the town considers.

I am by nature a fiscal conservative. Any increases in spending should be thoroughly documented and supported. In fact, that is the current process in the town of Brewster. Our financial team has won awards for their budget presentations. The Town budgets are detailed, and any increases are well documented.

I support making town investments necessary for safety and accessibility. Our residents are currently using both Sea Camps properties and seem to be reasonably pleased with the level of access. I have heard from many individuals that any major spending needs to be considered in the context of our overall capital spending needs. This means we need to first understand the costs of addressing upgrades to our elementary school buildings. We will have some clarity on this when the select board receives the code compliance study on Stony Brook School due this summer. There are many moving parts to this educational picture, including efforts at further regionalization that could also impact needs and costs.

Environmental threats cannot be ignored. We must be diligent in protecting our one source of water. Also, our ponds and beaches provide many of the reasons people come to the Cape. I was very concerned when swimming advisory signs appeared at an Upper Mill Pond access point. Individuals and businesses depend on these environmental assets for their livelihood and enjoyment. 

I am a long-time contributor to the Brewster Ponds Coalition (BPC) and believe they are acting as strong advocates for the health and access of our ponds. I was pleased with the way the select board and the BPC came together on ways to incorporate the BPC’s wastewater management initiative into the integrated water resource management plan.This type of collaboration is to be applauded. 

As a select board member, I will always show concern for protecting these assets, and wastewater management is key to their overall health and our residents’ ability to benefit from their use.

Age: 70

Occupation: 40-plus years as a senior executive including board member for a foreign joint venture in China, general manager for Canadian, Mexican and South American operations and global business manager for two distinct businesses supplying the

automotive, aerospace and energy industries.

Years as Brewster resident: 34 years as a taxpayer, five years as a resident.

Education: Boston College High School; BA in biology, College of the Holy Cross; MS in biology with a concentration in freshwater ecology, Case Western Reserve University

I come from the private sector, where budgeting and spending were given high priorities and were based on critical company needs. There was no guarantee of a constant influx of dollars as there are with property taxes. This creates its own discipline and prioritization. Management of three global companies and two business units as well as board oversight for a US China joint venture in Shanghai has given me significant experience managing large budgets and determining spending priorities. This includes management of capital spending, employees, labor negotiations, government affairs and even navigating international trade complexities in order to ensure company profitability and resilience. I know the value of finding and supporting good employees as I do the value of an excellent education that we provide to our schoolchildren. My ability to discern critical priorities for town residents such as affordability, education and infrastructure compared to those that can be deferred, make me a good steward of our tax dollars.

The most significant issues that face town residents are property taxes. Property taxes have risen 31 percent in the last five years, primarily because the assessed value of housing has almost doubled. This has done nothing to help our full-time residents. Seniors on fixed incomes and young families trying to buy or sustain homes in Brewster are being squeezed and forced to move elsewhere. Rather than focusing spending on our school infrastructure (which needs significant investments in the next few fiscal years), the town asked for a significant increase in property taxes to fund $11.4 million dollars of the initial development of the Sea Camp properties. This was done with the clear knowledge that our schools would need millions of dollars in repairs and that our fire and police departments are understaffed, especially during the summer. The town needs to evaluate and prioritize spending based on critical needs before committing to additional projects! 

Brewster is blessed with beautiful beaches, 80 ponds and a significant amount of conservation land. Controlling development within the town, ensuring that any new construction near ponds, wetlands or coastal areas meet the town’s existing 300-foot setback for septic systems will continue to make Brewster an environmentally sound community.

Property tax increases of 31 percent in the past five years are unsustainable! Nonetheless, based on the May 2024 town vote to approve the Sea Camps comprehensive plan, the town continues to work on its costly implementation. Even now, a revised phase I plan purportedly in the millions of dollars is under discussion. I would put a moratorium on any additional spending other than maintenance of the Sea Camp properties until we have addressed the critical needs of the Stony Brook Elementary school. These costs are estimated in excess of $13 million before code improvements, according to the May 5, 2025 annual town meeting handout. Taxpayers have an obligation to our young schoolchildren and their teachers to provide an excellent education in a healthy and safe school. Additionally, we need to consider spending more money on our fire and police departments that are especially understaffed during the summer season. These are critical needs. Spending significant taxpayer money and going into further debt for development of the Sea Camps should not be a priority. 

At the candidate forum, I emphasized the importance of waiting for the updated integrated water resource management plan (IWRMP) before making decisions. The Ponds Coalition now agrees, recognizing that the IWRMP will assess our town’s water needs — including wastewater, water supply and stormwater — while identifying the most effective and sustainable solutions. 

Once the study is complete, we can implement strategies that enhance water quality across all systems in a cost-effective, achievable manner. With an advanced degree in freshwater ecology and strong experience conducting wastewater studies for the U.S. EPA, I bring scientific expertise and strategic insight to ensure that our community adopts responsible, long-term water management solutions.